Director Karan Malhotra has got Sanjay Dutt to play the ruthless, merciless villain in Yash Raj Films’ period action-adventure Shamshera, in what can be termed as a casting coup. He will be pitted against Ranbir Kapoor in the mega action spectacle. Interestingly, this will be Sanjay’s first-ever film with the banner, while Ranbir has previously done Bachna Ae Haseeno (2008) and Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year (2009) with them.
We've got an ultimate casting coup! Our upcoming action adventure #Shamshera has a roaring villain against #RanbirKapoor. It's the one & only #SanjayDutt | @duttsanjay | @karanmalhotra21 | @ShamsheraMovie
— Yash Raj Films (@yrf) May 10, 2018
The director was quoted as saying, “Shamshera is a ferocious and fearless character in the film. Therefore his nemesis, the villain had to be even more fierce and monumental in every aspect. Who better than Sanjay sir to give us that impact on screen?”
Sanjay’s father, Sunil Dutt and filmmaker Yash Chopra shared a long association and were friends for many decades. Dutt Senior starred in Chopra’s films such as Waqt, Faasle and Parampara.
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Sanjay says, “My father and Yash (Chopra) uncle were close friends and now that I’m doing my first YRF film, it is an extremely emotional moment for me. When I heard Karan’s idea to pit Ranbir against me, I thought it was brilliant. I look forward to shooting this incredibly exciting film, my second with the hugely-talented Karan Malhotra.”
Incidentally, Ranbir is playing Sanjay Dutt in the biopic based on the senior actor’s life titled Sanju. The recently released teaser and posters have garnered a lot of attention to the film and how Ranbir has left no stones unturned in perfecting the role.
Shamshera is set in the heartland of India and will have jaw-dropping action sequences and Ranbir in a never-seen-before avatar. Shamshera is set to go on floors by the end of this year and shooting will wrap up by mid-2019.